Chapter-2

Input Devices and Output Devices

2.0 Objectives
2.1 Introduction
2.2 Input Devices
2.3 Output Device
2.4 Summary
2.5 Check Your Progress - Answers
2.6 Questions for Self - Study.
2.7 Suggested Readings

2. 0 OBJECTIVES

After studying this chapter you will be able to:

 Explain the definitions of peripheral devices.
 Describe different types of input dev ices like punched cards, keyboards,
 mouse, digitizers and scanners and output devices like printers, plotters,
video display terminals and microfilms, their broad design, their
features advantages and disadvantages.
 Discuss the common peripheral devices, their physical appearances and the
mode of operation of these dev ices. The student would be able to use these
devices in the practical efficiently.

2.1 INTRODUCTION

As seen earlier, computer hardware is made up of the physical parts of the

computer system like the electronic ICs, magnetic storage media and the mechanical
devices.
The devices which are a means of communication between the computer and the
outside world are called as peripheral devices.

Those peripheral devices which supply information i.e. data and progr ms from
the outside world to the computer are the input devices. Those peripheral devices
which give information from the computer to the user or store them in secondary storage
devices, like floppy disks or tapes for future use are called output devices.

The processors which are required to convert the input data into machine
readable form and to convert the output generated by the computer into human
readable form are known as input/output (I/O) interfaces. There are two concepts
related to the way in which data is input to the computer:
1. On-line Data Input : Here data is directly transferred to the computer
2. Off-line Data Input : - Here the data is not immediately transferred to the
computer.

2.2 INPUT DEVICES

The various types of input devices most commonly used are :

2.2.1 Punch Cards :
Data is recorded onto punch cards or punch tapes using standard codes, like the
Hollerith code. The pattern of these holes is interpreted by a card reader device and
converted into machine readable form. A punch card machine is used to transcribe the
data onto the card.
Input Devices and Output Devices / 19
 Fig. 2.1 Punch Card and a Keyboard

Characteristic of punch card

 they are cheaper

 they are reliable.

Disadvantage of punch card

The major drawback of these cards is that they cannot be reused. Also the
cards have to be handled and stored carefully. Even if a single card is misplaced or the
arrangement of the cards gets disturbed it becomes very difficult to rearrange them and to
detect there problem. Punched cards require large storage space since they cannot be
folded.

2.2.2 Keyboard
The keyboard is one of the most commonly used input device. The computer
keyboard is similar to a typewriter keyboard. The keyboard has keys made up of
letters, numbers, symbols and special function keys.
A display screen or monitor (Cathode Ray Tube) is used to display the data
entered by the operator with the keyboard. This monitor can also display the results of
processing as well as messages generated by the computer. A special symbol, called
a cursor, indicates the position on the screen. There are special keys on the keyboard
which allow the cursor to move in up, down, left and right directions. Other special
keys on the keyboard include keys like Tab, Del, Ctrl, Ins, PgUp, PgDn etc.

The keys on the keyboard include :

A-Z : Used to enter alphabets
0-9 : Used to enter numbers
Up, Down, Left, Right(Arrow Keyes): To Move the cursor in the specified direction
F1-F12 : Special Function Keys
PgUp/PgDn : To move cursor up or down by one page enter:
To move cursor to a new line
Shift : A Special key To Select the other option shown normal character on the same
key Num Lock : Activates the keypad on the right side of the keyboard. In the normal
mode this numeric pad works as per the function written below the number on the key

Advantages of the keyboard :

 It is very easy to use a keyboard
 It offers a number of facilities
 Editing or changing the input data is very easy with the help of the
keyboard
 It is relatively Inexpensive
2.2.3 Mouse
The mouse is a pointing device. The mouse is used to control and manipulate
cursor movement on the monitor. The mouse usually has three or four buttons on it and a
roller ball which signals the movements made by the mouse on a flat surface. These
movements are transferred to the system. The mouse is rolled on a flat surface by the
user. It can be used independently, but normally it is used in conjunction with the
keyboard to improve the efficiency of the input operation. The mouse can be used to
select data. Also the mouse makes it possible to move fast from one par of the screen to
the other.
The various types of mouse in use are
 Mechanical mouse

Computer Fundamentals / 20
 Optical mouse
 Opt mechanical mouse

Fig. 2.2 Mouse

2.2.4 Light Pen
The light pen is a picking dev ice. The light pen contains a photocell placed in a small
tube. This photo- cell detects the presence of light on the CRT (monitor). The tip of the
pen is moved on the surface of the screen to write or sketch data. The light pen is
especially useful in Computer Aided Design (CAD) applications.

Fig 2.3 Light Pen

2.2.5 Joy Stick

The position and speed with which the joystick is moved is converted into digital
signals by the use of a lever. These signals are then sent to the computer system. This in
turn controls the movement of the cursor on the screen. The joystick is mainly used in
video games applications.

2.2.6 Track Ball

The track ball uses
a hard sphere to control
cursor movement. The bail
can be rotated in any
direction by hand and this
is translated into a digital
signal to control the cursor
movement on the screen.

Fig 2.4 Track ball

2.2.7 Touch screen:
A touch panel is a transparent plate which is fitted over the CRT. Input is
registered when a finger or any other object comes in contact with the plate.
There are two types of touch panels:
 Optical touch panels
 Electric touch panels

Fig. 2.5 Touch Screen

Input Devices and Output Devices / 21

2.2.8 Digitizer :
A digitizer converts a graphical or pictorial data into digital form which can be
directly entered and stored in a computer. A digitizer is also called as a graphics tablet.
There are two types of digitizers :

Fig 2.6 A Scanner, a Graphics tablet (digitizer)

• Image scan digitizer and flat bed digitizer

In the image scan digitizer the entire image is scanned and reproduced
automatically. Therefore the image scan digitizers are more powerful as compared to
flat bed digitizers. Flat bed digitizers are mainly used in simple drawings, graphs etc.
whereas image scan digitizers are used for photographs and pictures.

2.2.9 Scanner :
Scanner is able to directly enter text and images into the computer memory.
Therefore the duplication work of entering data is eliminated and this also results in
increased accuracy. The speed of data entry also increases. There are two types of
scanners :

1. Optical Scanners
2. Magnetic Ink Character Recognition devices

a) Optical Scanner:

The optical scanner uses a light source and sensor for reading the information on the
paper. It can read characters, pictures, graphics from the paper. The common types of
optical scanners are:
1. The Optical Mark Reader (OMR): This is capable of reading pre specified
marks made by pencils or pens with the help of light. Light is focused on the page
that is to be scanned. The reflected light pattern is detected by the device. These
types of scanners are normally used where the data is preprinted for applications.
eg. answer papers of the objective tests where the answers are marked with pencils or
preprinted forms.

2. Optical Character Reader :The Optical Character Reader (OCR) can read
alphabets, characters and numbers printed on paper. These characters can be either
handwritten or typed. However special fonts are required to be used while typing. In
case of handwritten data, the characters have to be of standard predefined size. The
OCR reads each character as a collection of pixels. The light which is reflected from
the page to be scanned is converted into binary data. OCRs are available in various
sizes and speeds. These devices are expensive and are mainly used in processing
where the data volumes are large.

Computer Fundamentals / 22
 Fig 2.7 Bar Code Reader

Bar code reader is a device which reads bar coded data. Data which is coded in the form
of light or dark lines (bars) is a bar code. Bar code readers are normally used in
applications like labeling of products in retail shops, super markets etc. A laser beam
scanner is used to read the bar code.
The most commonly used bar code is the Universal Product Code (UPC). In this code
the bars are coded as 10 digits. The first five digits define the manufacturer or supplier, and
the remaining five digits denote the actual product of the manufacturer.

b) Magnetic Ink Character Recognition (MICR):

A special type of input device, this mainly finds application in banking areas. A
magnetic ink is used to encode the characters to be read. This ink contains iron
oxide particles. W hen a cheque is presented in the bank, the amount is encoded by
the bank employee in the lower right corner and the cheque is then processed with
MICR. Special character sets like E13B and CMC7 are used by these devices to encode
data. The E13B has four special character and the digits 0-9. The CMC7 has five special
characters, digits 0-9, and all alphabets.
The advantages of using MICR are that they speed up data entry, and even
roughly handled cheque can be processed relatively easily. However among the
limitations are that special type of magnetic ink is required for .encoding characters
and only a limited number of digits and characters are available for encoding.

2.2.10 Voice Recognition Systems :

This system allows the user to talk with the computer. The Voice Recognition
System consists of a microphone or telephone into which the operator speaks. The
speech is converted into electrical signals. The signal is input as the voice of the
operator. This is matched with an already entered pre-stored pattern of words called
vocabulary. W hen the closest match is found the word is recognized. Since each
operator may have a different style of speaking, all Voice Recognition systems are
highly operator dependent. Also a separate vocabulary for each operator is required to
be maintained. The advantages of the Voice Recognition systems are that they reduce
the cost of data entry. Also the operator can move freely while talking into the computer.

Check your Progress- 2.1 & 2.2

1. Fill in the blanks

a) ……………… is an example of a picking device.
b) ………………. is an example of a pointing device.
c) A digitizer is also as a ……………
2. Give the full form of the following.
a) MICR b) OCR c) OMR

3. Match the following.

A B
a) Punch card 1) Computer games
b) Bar code 2) Output devices
c) Joy stick 3) Hollerith Code
d) Floppy Disk 4) Universal Product Code (UPC)

Input Devices and Output Devices / 23

 2.3 OUTPUT DEVICES

The output device allows the compute to communicate with the outside world by
accepting data from the computer and transforming it into user readable form.

The various types of output devices are :

2.3.1 Printers:
A printer produces the output from the computer on the paper. It is the most commonly used
output device. The printers produce a hard copy i.e. a permanent copy of the results
which can be stored and read later. Printers are classified as :
a) Impact Printer
b) Non Impact Printer

a) Impact Printer
Impact printers are similar to typewriters. They use hammer to strike a character against
an inked ribbon and the impact of the hammer causes the image of the character to be
printed on paper. E.g. Dot matrix printers, line printers, daisy wheel printers,

Advantages of impact printers:

 Their functioning is relatively easy

 Multiple copies can be produced at the same time with the help of carbon paper.
 Impact printers are noisy in operation and are subject to wear and tear of
mechanical parts.

Types of impact printers :

1) Dot Matrix Printers

Dot matrix printer prints each character as a pattern of dots. The printer has a printer
head with a matrix of pins (needles). Typical heads have a matrix of 7 rows and 9
columns. These pins produce a pattern of dots to form the individual characters.

Fig. 2.8 A dot matrix printer, a daisy wheel and a daisy wheel
printer

These printers are relatively low in cost and print at speeds of 50-500 characters
per second. The programmer can also define the shape of characters for this printer.
Therefore it is possible to print many special characters, characters in various sizes as
well as charts and graphs on such printers. Dot matrix printers are very commonly
used in most computer systems.

2) Daisy Wheel Printer :

These printers are also called as letter quality printers. These printers have a
daisy wheel with a number of petals. A character is embossed on each wheel. There
is a motor which spins the wheel at a fast rate. W hen the desired character is brought to
the correct position, a hammer strikes the petal to produce the output. Thus these
printers are impact printers. The letter quality of these printers is much superior as
compared to the dot matrix printers. But they are slow and typically print in the
range of 10-50 characters per second.

Computer Fundamentals / 24
3) Line Printer:
Line printers are very fast printers which print at speed of 200-2500 lines per
minute. These printers are impact printers and normally have 132 print positions per line.
Different types of character set are available for different printers. Line printers are
normally used in applications where large volumes of data are to be printed.

Fig 2.9 A Line printer

The two types of line printers are :

(i) Drum printers
This consists of a metallic cylinder. On the surface of this drum there are
characters in bands. Each column or band on the drum contains all the characters.
Opposite to each band there is a hammer located behind the paper. The drum rotates at
a fast rate. The hammer strikes the paper along with the inked ribbon and produces the
output. One line is printed in each revolution of the printer.
(ii) Chain printers
In the chain printers there is one print hammer for each print position on a line. There
is a fast moving chain called the print chain. W hen this chain rotates, the print hammer
and the inked ribbon strike the paper against the proper character on the chain.

b) Non Impact Printer

They use thermal, chemical, electrostatic and inkjet technologies for printing as against
the hammer mechanism of impact printers. E.g. Laser printers, DeskJet printers.

Ink Jet Printer:

Ink jet printer is a non impact printer. It prints characters by spraying ink from tiny
nozzles onto the paper. A special type of ink which has a high iron content is used. This
ink is charged electrically when it comes out of the nozzle. This ink is absorbed by the
paper and dries instantly. The output of the ink jet printer is of a superior quality. Also it is
possible to obtain colored output. A number of character styles and sizes are available.
However, being a non impact printer it is not possible to prepare carbon copies with this
printer.

Fig 2.10 An Ink Jet Printer

Laser Printers : These printers are used where a very superior quality output is
desired. The image is created on a photo sensitive drum ; with a laser
beam. The laser is turned on and off when it moves back and forward across the drum. It
leaves a negative charge on the drum to which a positively charged black toner powder
sticks. W hen the paper rolls by the drum, the ink is transferred to the paper. Laser
Input Devices and Output Devices / 25
 printers have a buffer memory to store entire pages and hence their speed is v ery fast.
The biggest advantage of these printers is that no mechanical movement is
involved, therefore
they are noiseless in operation. However there are comparatively expensive.

2.3.2 Plotter :
A plotter is an output device used in applications where printouts of graphs and drawings
are required. Plotters are of two types :

Fig 2.11 plotter

1) Flat bed i.e. X-Y plotter:

This plotter plots on a paper which is fixed on a rectangular flatbed table. One
recording pen moves in the x direction and one in the y direction to plot on the paper.
Color plotting is al so possible by using pens of different colors.

2) Drum Plotter:
In this plotter the paper on which the output is to be obtained, is placed over a drum. The
drum rotates back and forth to produce motion. The pen is mounted horizontally across
the drum and the horizontal motion of the pen is achieved with the help of the pen holder.
The drum and the holder move simultaneously to produce output. Multi coloured printing
is possible by changing the pens.
The speed of plotters is very slow. Therefore normally the output is first sent to some
secondary storage device like a magnetic tape and then directed to the plotter.

2.3.3 Video Display Terminal:

Fig 2.12 : Screen - Flat Panel Display & Monitor

• CRT:
An electron beam is moved across a phosphor coated screen to produce the image.
The CRT can be monochrome or colored. This screen normally has 25 lines and 80
characters.

Computer Fundamentals / 26
• Flat Panel Display :
The most common flat panel display is the Liquid Crystal Display (LCD). This does not
have a picture tube. The other type of display is the gas plasma screen.

• The Video Display Terminal:

The most popular output device in direct access processing is the Video Display Terminal.
These terminals display information instantaneously. The monitor and the keyboard together
are called a terminal. The types of terminals are :

Dumb Terminal:
This is a combination of a keyboard and monitor which can send or receive data, but
cannot process the data.

Smart Terminal: A smart terminal has an inbuilt microprocessor. It can perform

arithmetic, logic and control functions. They also have some memory capacity. So they
can store the data before sending to the processor. They can also control the cursor
movement.

Intelligent Terminal: This type of terminal also has an inbuilt microprocessor which can
be programmed by the user. These terminals also have limited processing capability.
They can communicate with other terminals and processors.

2.3.4 Computer Output Microfilm (COM):

This technology is used to record the computer output as microscopic filmed images.
Information is recorded on a roll of microfilm. A microfilm recorder displays the
information onto a screen. An inbuilt camera then takes pictures of this information. A
microfilm reader is used to view this information. COM devices are normally used in
application where there are large volumes of data.
COM devices are much faster than the normal printers. Also since the size of these films
is very small the space required for storage is very less as compared to printed output.
However since COM systems are highly sophisticated they are relatively expensive and
are mainly used where there are high volumes of data.

Check your Progress - 2.3

Answer in brief.
a. W hat is a terminal? Name any two types of terminals.
.......................................................................................................................

.............................................................................................
b. W hat is an impact printer? Name one impact printer.
.......................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................

2.4 SUMMARY

The devices of the computer system which are a means of communication

between the computer system and the outside world are called as peripheral devices.
Those devices which accept data from the user are input devices, and those devices that
give information from the computer to the user or store it in secondary storage dev
ices for later use are output devices.
Input Output Interfaces are the processors which convert the data input by the
user into a form which can be understood by the computer and also convert output
generated by the computer into a human readable form. Data can be entered in the

Input Devices and Output Devices / 27

computer directly i.e. online or after first preparing it and entering later i.e. offline.
The various input devices are:

1. Punched cards - data is first recorded into these cards using standard codes and
then fed to the computer with a card punch machine. Though cheap, their major
drawbacks are that they cannot be reused and require large storage space.
2. Keyboard - is the most commonly used device for on line data entry. It is very easy
to use, inexpensive and allows on-line data editing.
3. Mouse -is a pointing device used along with a keyboard to control cursor
movement, select data etc. Light pen, joystick and track ball are also similar
devices used for cursor control.
4. A digitizer - This converts pictorial data into a digital form which can be directly
entered and stored in a computer.
5. A scanner can directly enter text and images into computer memory using light
source or magnetic ink recognition.
6. A voice recognition system converts the speech of the operator into electrical
signals for data entry.

Output Devices:
The common output devices are :
1) Printer - these are of two types :

impact and non impact.

Impact printers produce output on paper and use a hammer to strike a character
against a ribbon.
Non impact printers use thermal, chemical, electrostatic and inkjet technologies to
produce output. Some of the commonly used printers are dot matrix, Line printers,
Drum printers, Ink jet printers and laser printers.

2) Plotter: Plotters are mainly use for output of graphs and drawings. The common
plotters are Flat Bed Plotters and Drum Plotters.

3) Video Display Terminals : Some of the popular video output devices are
the monitor, Liquid Crystal Display, and a terminal which is a combination of a
monitor and keyboard together.

4) Computer Output Microfilm: These are highly sophisticated output devices

which record computer output as microscopic filmed images.

2.5 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS - ANSWERS

2.1 & 2.2

1. a) Light pen
b) Mouse
c) Graphics tablet
2. a) Magnetic Ink Character Recognition
b) Optical Character Reader
c) Optical Mark Reader
3. a-3
b-4
c-1
d-2

2.3
1. a) The monitor and the keyboard together are called a terminal e.g. Dumb
Terminal, Smart Terminal.
b) Impact printers are printers which use a hammer to strike a character against an
inked ribbon, the impact of which causes the image of the character to be printed on the
paper, eg. dot matrix printers,

Computer Fundamentals / 28
 2. 6 QUESTIONS FOR SELF - STUDY

1. Define : Peripheral Devices, Input Devices, Output Devices

2. Write Short notes on: Punched Cards, Keyboard, Optical Scanner, Plotter.
3. W hat are impact printers? Describe any two types of impact printers.
4. What is COM?
5. Describe the various types of computer terminals.

2.7 SUGGESTED READINGS

 Computer Fundamentals
Concepts, Systems & Applications – P.K Sinha

References

 http://www.tutorialspoint.com/

 

Input Devices and Output Devices / 29